esa questionare

geena wrote: I completed my esa questionarre sent it signed for upon delivery on 28th march last week. It has to be with them this Friday 5th April. As of today they have not received it tracking online to see. My carer has just spoken to Atsos they are sending out another questionare and said it will still be ok if they receive it next week and my benefits wont be affected? Is this correct as the original letter said it had to be back by 5th April? I have kept my proof of posting it last week.

Most return addresses for ATOS are in fact mail drops rather than an actual office and it can take a week or more for an ESA50 to make it through to the office actually dealing with your claim, also because the forms arrive by the bag full, it is often the case that they are not "signed for" which of course makes tracking them nearly impossible.

So, I would certainly continue to check with them as to whether they have received it. It is also possible that it was also affected by the Royal Mail strike on Saturday as many ATOS mail drops are manned by their staff.

As to whether you should complete another ESA50, if it has definitely been lost then it would certainly be to your advantage to do so, whether ATOS can and will extend the period for you to return it is unclear, as they manage this part of the process, then they can choose to do so if they wish, however, there is no room in the legislation for them to do this, and historically it is rare for this to actually happen.

I am hoping that you have a copy of the of the form you originally returned, in which case I would take a further copy and return this rather than waiting for a new form.

Gordon